Process of treating hydrocarbon oil



G. EGLOFF March 25, 1930.

PROCESS OF TREATING HYDROCARBON OIL Original Filed Oct. 22, 1923Patented Mar. 25, 1930 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE GUSTAV EGLOFF, OFCHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR TO UNIVERSAL OIL PRODUCTS COMPANY, OFCHICAGO, ILLINOIS, A CORPORATION OF SOUTH DAKOTA.

PROCESS OF TREATING HYDROCARBON OIL Application filed October 22, 1923,Serial No. 069,929. Renewed January 12, 1929.

This invention relates to improvements in treating hyrocarbon oils, and.refers more particularly to the method of handling the vapors generatedfrom the cracking of petroleum oil, which petroleum oils are of anemulsified nature.

Certain petroleum oils of an asphalticbase,

as for example, certain oils from the fields ad acent Long Beach,California, are highly emulsified, yielding upon distillation gasolineemulsified with water and ofa cherrylike consistency. As far as I amaware this type of distillate has not yielded sufficiently to treatmentand isat present a waste product. To overcome this difiiculty is themain purpose of the present invention.

I overcome this ditficulty by the fractional condensation of the gaseouswater and gasoline vapors, maintaining a condenser at approximately 215F. and under about 100 7 pound pressure so-that the steam and verylowboiling point gasoline will condense together in a subsequentcondenser with the emulsifying agent.

The material condensed in such first condenser passes to a cooler whilethe vapors which are not condensed in the first condenser pass to asecond condenser, where Stratification of water and gasoline takesplace.

The invention will be understood from the following description,reference being had to the accompanying drawing in which the singlefigure represents a somewhat diagrammatic side elevation and verticalsection of an appara-tus suitable for carrying out the invention.

Referring to the drawings (1) designates the furnace, in which ismounted the heating element (2) which may take the form of a spaced pans(5) and baifies (6). The heaviest vapors will be condensed and drawn 05near the bottom of theedephlegmator through pipe (7) and control valve(8) leadingmto I e as coil (17). This condenser coil (17) may bemaintained at a temperature of say 215 F. 5 and under a pressure of say100 pounds more or less by suitably controlling the valves (18) and(19). The material which condenses in the primary condenser (17) whichwill be the bulk of water and the heavier vapors pass out 70 throughpipe (20) and trap (21) into the cooler (22), the outlet of which iscontrolled by valve (23). The uncondensed vapors pass out through pipe(24 to condenser (25), the outlet of which is controlled by 7e valve(26).

p The cooler (22) and condenser (25) may be maintained at a temperatureof say F. more or less. The arrangement is such that the uncondensiblegases an'dthe vapors which '30 are not condensed in the primarycondenser (17 will pass into the second condenser (25) while only liquidwill enter the cooler (22,). It is very probable that by preventing thegases and uncondensedvapors from entering 86 the cooler (22) that thetendency to re-emulsification of the bulk of the water and oil, which isin the cooler (22), will be avoided. .VVhile the exact nature ofthesereactions which tend to cause re-emulsification is not known,nevertheless it has been foundthat slight differences in the handling ofthese emuslified oils produce substantial differences in theircommercial treatment.

By means of the present invention the emulsifying'agent, or suchgases orvapors as tend to more readily emulsify .are separated from the bulk of.the water and re-emulsification thus prevented;

I claim as my invention:

1. A process of treating petroleum oil of an emulsified character,consisting in subjecting such oil to cracking conditions of temperatureand pressure, in subjecting the vapors evolved from the oil todephlegmation, in passing the uncondensed oil and water vapors through aprimary condenser maintained at a temperature of substantially 215 F.and under a pressure of substantially a hundred pounds to the squareinch, to condense the bulk of such oil and water vapors, in passing theresulting condensate directly through a cooling zone, in withdrawing theuncondensed vapors and gases from said primary condenser withoutadmitting the same to said cooling zone, in subjecting such uncondensedvapors and gases to a further condensing action, and in taking as thematerial from said condensing zone in a de-emulsified form.

2. A rocess of treating petroleum oil of an emulsified character,consisting in heating the oil to a cracking temperature undersuperatmospheric pressure, in subjecting the vapors evolved from the oilto reflux condensation, in passing the uncondensed oil and water vaporsthrough a primary condenser maintained under superatmospheric pressure,and at a temperature below the boiling point of water at the pressure onthe condenser, but above the boiling point of water for atmosphericpressure, to condense the greater part of such oil and water vapors, inpassing the resulting condensate directly through a cooling zone, inwithdrawing the uncondensed vapors and gases from said primary condenserwithout admitting the same to said cooling zone, in

subjecting such uncondensed vapors and gases to a further condensingaction, and in taking off the material from said condensmg zone in ade-emulsified form. 3. A process of treating petroleum oils of anemulsified character, consisting in heating the oil to a crackingtemperature under superatmospheric pressure, passing the vapors evolvedfrom the oil to a zone of dephlegmation, passing 'the'uncondensed oilyand watery vapors therefrom through a primary condenser maintained undersuperatmospheric ressure, and at a temperature below the boi 'n point ofwater at that pressure, passing the condensate through a cooling zone,withdrawing the uncondensable gases and uncondensed vapors from theprimary condenser and subjecting them to further cooling.

4. A process of treating petroleum oils of an emulsified character,consisting in heating the oil to a cracking temperature, passing vaporstherefrom to a zone of dephlegmation in which vapors of a heavierfraction and an intermediate fraction are condensed, separatelywithdrawing and cooling said fractions, passing the uncondensed vaporousand gaseous products from said zone of dephlegmation to a primarycondenser maintained at a temperature above the atmospheric boilingtemperature of water, and'under superatmos.

